That included approximately 6,900 megawatts of capacity windmills installed in locations throughout the world.

Wind plants now power the equivalent of 7.5 million average American homes or 16 million average European homes, according to AWEA.

Ninety-three percent of the additional windmills installed in 2002 were located in Europe and the United States.

The top five wind energy markets in 2002 were located in:

€ Germany with 12,001 megawatts

€ Spain with 4,830 megawatts

€ United States with 4,685 megawatts

€ Denmark with 2,880 megawatts

€ India with 1,702 megawatts

Germany's production generates enough electricity to meet 4.5 percent of the nation's needs, according to AWEA.

Looking at the turbines in Germany, most of them are also manufactured there, with most of the country's wind farms are located in the northwestern region.

In 2002 Spain installed 1,493 megawatts of windmills to pull ahead of the U.S. wind markets.

With much of the country's interest in wind energy soaring in the past decade, just 52 megawatts of wind power was produced in 1993.

The boom was sparked by the country's government when the officials enacted a requirement that utilities pay a guaranteed premium price for electricity from wind during the first five years of the project.

To boost the local economy, AWEA reported, state governments required that a large share of the investments from manufacturing and construction remain in the local economy.

The windmills in Denmark are meeting about 20 percent of the people's needs, making it the leader in usage percentage.

According to AWEA, "the Danish wind energy industry is a mainstay of the country's economy with an annual turnover of close to $3 billion."

About half of the turbines being installed worldwide are of Danish origin, making the parts and wind energy technology major export items.

Though the total amount of productivity in Somerset County is far less than that in other locations, the future of the industry depends on a decision by county commissioners.

A meeting to discuss the proposed windmill and tower regulations will be held tonight at 7 p.m. inside the Somerset County Courthouse in courtroom 1.